Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1887-09-30
THE ORIENTAL BOX.
BY EVELYN THORPE.

- - A@hAN AAlOhI
There was chill in the night, but it
was divinely still and clear. One of the
windows opening from the library into
the garden stood wide open. Hugh LET
fingwell reveled in fresh air, in all hygie-
mic rigors. Sixty winters had bleached
his hair and scanned his imperious face;
but they had been powerless to dim the
keenness of his glance, to impair the
athletic straightness of his build, to dull
the unbending aggressiveness of his
caustic temper, Of his sardonic misan-
thropy.
1t was a handsome, harsh, eagle-like
visage on which the light of the low
lamp fell. Presently the eyes wandered
to the window and the block of white
moonlight touching its threshold. Hugh
Letfingwell rose, and with his hands
crossed behind his back wandered out in
to the garden.
Under the quiescence Of the night there
was q vague stirrins, of spring vague
premonitlon of coming change. The
stern man walking over the moon .bathed
lawn on the outskirts of which the out.
lines OF leafless boughs cast fine lnky
NA"SSASy " L-dIdN lulGIiuCGlIltDL,
lifted his face once or twice and the
shadow of some emotion seemed to pass
over it. Such a night brought back
memories-memorics not yet buried be-
You'd resurrection, though the dust of
long years lay heaped upon them.
At turn of the walk the high encir-
cling stone wall came into view. There
was little door in it, sometimes used
by the gardener, but more generally
closed and locked. 1t now stood ajar.
Hugh Lefingwell frowned. Careless
ness in any department of the domestic
machinery this autocrat who had retired
from the world visited with relentless
vlgor. He walked forward with quick.
ened step.
At that moment, from the shadow of
clump of evergreen trees, a young man
emerged and young girl.
The girl turned white and with an IN
stinctive gesture, as though half begging
protection, half giving it. she laid her
hand on the young mans arm. He was
handsome, beardless young fellow. He
recovered himself quickly, and a look of
determination which did him credit,
settled about his mouth.
''Mr. Letfingwell-" he began.
SOL" int ruptcd the old man slowly,
and as though the other had not spoken,
''my tmid niece deceives me, does sheg'
Uncle" cried the girl, with trem-
bling appeal, II never meant to- If you
would have allowed Hal to come to the
house"
ALLOWED him to come to the house2n
laughed Hugh Letfingwell. "NoI don't
think was likely to do that"
"Mr. Leflingwel," began the young
man anew, lit would never have been my
wish to enter your grounds secretly in
this way could | have seen Stella in any
other manner. To make her my wife is
the dearest wish of my life"
(Which, like many other dearest wishes,
will go nnfulflled And since | find
that my own niece cannot be trusted,
that she steals out of the house at night
to meet young men at the garden gate, l
shall see to 1t that something is done to
restrain her propensities in that direction
from now on
And with the same unrufiled, sardonic
calmness, which to Stella was more
dreadful, because more unusual than
one of his usual bursts of uncomfortable
passion, Hugh Letfingwell took his niece
by the arm, and, without glance in the
direction OF the young man, led her back
TO the house.
Half an hour later Hugh Leifingwell
was again alone in his library; but this
time he was not reading. He had put
down his niece's little love dream-"the
romantic puppy love of those two young
snips"--with his usual high. handed sue.
cess, and he tlattered himself that he
could take such measures as would
effectually make an end both to theil
sentiment and their deception in the
future. He now dismissed the entire
matter from his mind. He was not dis
appointed in Stella, he told himself
She was very fair, very delicate, young
angel to the sense of vision in her frail
soft beauty. But she was a woman, and
like every other woman, weak and false
at heart. Did he, Hugh Leflingwell
not know the brood2 The bitter ole
misogynist laughed shortly to himself
One was a good sample of the whole
They were all alile--all alike.
He had settled himself to his books
and papers on first descending from
Stella's room and deliberately turning
the key of her door behind him. But
for some reason his thoughts wandered
The restless influence of this late Marcel
night seemed in subtle fashion 10 have
made its way into his blood Tit
memories which had come throngins
about him like troop of shadowy pres
ences, vague, haunting, half defined, a,
he walked under the moonlight, rost
again into nearer being, taking on
more vital shape, more pressing atti
tude. We all have such moments, wher
the present recedes, and the past rushe
into the vacant place with the force of
liberated tide when the dikes are opened
The dixie may have been a strong ont
and high; it has stood through so man,
years that we may have forgotten tn,
pent-up waters lying silent on the othe
side. But nature never suffers wholly
divorce from that which has been, anC
she has strange and unexpected touche
wherewith to raise the spell of sorrow
long exercised, a weird power over dor
mant chords that suddenly go vibratin,
backward until they rouse myraiC
echoes in the chambers of the dead.
For some TINA Hu0h aft nowalI 1vo IL n.